A loaded gun pointed by one Ministry of Defence police officer into the armour of another during the shift changeover in Gloucestershire, has lead to a 'final warning.'

The Ministry of Defence police constable involved has now received a final written warning after his actions in making contact with a fellow officer with the muzzle of a loaded MP7 gun, were found to constitute misconduct.

Read More

The IPCC investigated the actions of the officer following the incident on 3 April 2016, during shift changeover procedures at the Bamfurlong Gloucestershire Police Armoury.

During the arming and disarming process, it was reported that the officer had deliberately pointed the muzzle of his loaded MP7 carbine into another officer’s body armour, pushing lightly on the weapon; which appeared to be a deliberate act.

There was no apparent argument or altercation leading up to the incident. Neither of the two other officers in the armoury at the time witnessed what was alleged to have happened.

After analysing all of the evidence, it was the IPCC investigator's opinion that the officer had a case to answer for gross misconduct, being a serious breach of the Standards of Professional Behaviour.

Read More

While the accused officer denied deliberately making contact with his colleague, stating that the contact was inadvertent as he moved his weapon in the cramped conditions of the armoury, it was the investigator's opinion that a reasonable panel could conclude that the incident was not accidental.

The disciplinary panel found insufficient evidence to show that the officer deliberately pushed the MP7 into the chest of his colleague.